Experimental Treatment for Lung Cancer

Lung cancer patients may choose to participate in clinical trials evaluating new methods of treating this disease. Patients can receive experimental treatment at the same hospitals and clinics they visit for standard treatment.

Potential

• Lung cancer patients who take part in an experimental treatment research study may be among the first to benefit from a new drug.

Function

• Researchers are studying new chemotherapy drugs, new ways of giving radiation therapy and better ways of conducting lung cancer surgery. Other novel treatments under study include cancer vaccines and gene therapy.

Referral

• Referral into lung cancer treatment studies is done by the patient's physician. The doctor determines whether the patient meets the eligibility criteria of the lung cancer study.

Coverage

• Medicare recipients and veterans may receive coverage for part of all of their experimental lung cancer treatment from the federal government. Private insurers may cover experimental therapies if some evidence shows the treatment is beneficial.

Warnings

• Taking herbs or alternative medicines isn't the same as participating in a clinical trial for lung cancer. Lung cancer patients interested in experimental treatment should take part in a doctor-supervised research study to ensure patient safety and treatment efficacy.